It's Raining Men
by meltinglacier
Summary: A portal opens up over New York City. Again. Residents of the city resign themselves to yet another alien attack. Instead, the members of the Survey Corps fall from the sky. Somehow this is Reed Richards' fault.


**It's Raining Men**

**Summary: **A portal opens up over New York City. Again. Residents of the city resign themselves to yet another alien attack. Instead, the members of the Survey Corps fall from the sky. Somehow this is Reed Richards' fault.

**Pairings:** None.

**Warnings:** Some strong language, courtesy of Levi and Director Fury.

**A/N:** Just a self-indulgent crossover written to get members of the Survey Corps interacting with the Avengers. Although actually, there is basically no interaction with the Avengers, mostly because SHIELD is a shady government organization that intercepts things like people falling out of a random portal and spirits them away into an equally shady government facility. (Also, I'm ignoring the revelations in _CA:TWS_ regarding SHIELD.)

* * *

"It's raining men!" Jane announced. "In thigh bondage!"

"Halleluiah!" was Darcy's reply as she fiddled with her iPod.

"No, Darcy, it's _raining men_!"

"Amen!" Darcy said with more gusto.

"Darcy! I'm being serious!"

"So am I!"

Dar_cy_," Jane hissed, in her _this-is-serious _voice. When Darcy looked up, she gestured sharply to the window, or rather, the spectacle occurring on the other side of it. Darcy paled, and rushed over, because it was actually raining people. Not just men, she could see now; they were getting closer and closer to the ground and ohh, that wasn't good, people went _splat_ –

The shimmering rust-colored portal that had spit them out disappeared and now there were just a bunch of people falling to the ground, oh shit.

There was no splat. The people quickly reoriented themselves in mid-air and moved with surprising agility, twisting and flipping through the air to shoot grappling-hook-thingies at the buildings surrounding them. Surprisingly, most of the hooks lodged in, holding their weight and slowing their decent.

A few people, however, tried to use Avenger's Tower as support, which, mistake. The Tower was one of the sturdiest buildings in New York now, and it proved this again as some of the people's grappling-hooks bounced off of the Tower. Despite herself, Darcy found herself leaning forward to track their movements. The people who had been lucky enough to attach to a suitable building on their first try swung down and caught their companions. In a matter of seconds, all the portal-people had landed on the street. Not everyone had a graceful landing like the short dude on the right, but no one went splat.

Was this an attack? They didn't look like aliens, appearing human enough, but then again, so did Thor.

If this _was_ an attack, then they chose a good time and all, since Stark and his suit were halfway across the world for some kind of business deal. Darcy figured that attackers would have been more coordinated, however. It mostly seemed like they had no idea what had happened either.

Traffic was in complete disarray, but it looked like there had been no accidents and SHIELD agents were already blocking off the street, to the general bad humor of the citizens of New York.

SHIELD had actually reacted pretty quickly, seeing as a giant redportal had opened right over New York to spit out some people with thigh bondage and swords. Swords that they were perfectly willing to use, it looked like. Well, actually, it looked like they were on the defensive, pretty much how Darcy would react if a bunch of SHIELD dudes surrounded her and pointed guns at her.

"Wanna stay up here or…?" She turned, realizing that Jane was already at the elevator, holding the doors open and raising her eyebrow as if to say, 'you coming?' Darcy rolled her eyes but she was grinning as she slid into place beside Jane.

-x-

Eren managed to land on his feet but he hit the ground hard, feeling the reverberations all the way to his teeth. Mikasa landed next to him, Armin a second behind her. He steadied himself against their shoulders; Mikasa offered him a bracing hand, which he took gratefully. Armin was busy analysing their surroundings and the broader situation in order to draw conclusions from his observations, so Eren focused on the immediate details.

There were no Titans. He relaxed, then tensed all over again because they had been on an expedition Outside; there were always Titans.

For that matter, where were their horses? He quickly looked upwards, but the strange, rust-colored portal was gone and there were no equines raining down on them. While they were now stranded with no transportation, it was still fortunate that none of their mounts had made the trip with them; Eren didn't think that they would be able to slow their horses' fall. Either way, they would end up stranded, but at least they weren't standing around a bunch of horse corpses.

Some people from the squads were already on their feet, swords at the ready. There were no Titans but there _were_ people who were rushing at them and soon had them surrounded. They were wielding weapons that he didn't recognize, guns of some sort but none that he had ever seen. From the way they held them, they were definitely ready to use them. The people were wearing similar clothing, some kind of uniform? Just where were they?

Captain Levi, looking calm as ever, sighed and drawled, "Look at all these big-ass buildings."

Eren glanced around, careful not to let his guard down, but he couldn't help but gape when he realized that the _huge_, shining structures around them were buildings (made up of...was that glass? Giant glass buildings that reached to the sky? What?) Everything was loud and bright and overwhelming.

He was glad that none of his friends from the 104th had been on this particular venture, so that they had not found themselves part of this situation. It was difficult enough for him to have Mikasa and Armin in danger here, without splitting his attention further. He snuck a quick look at them. Armin's face was troubled while Mikasa's was battle-steady.

In front of them, Captain Levi seemed annoyed, like this was all an elaborate inconvenience that he was tired of humoring.

Others were not so reserved. Someone to Eren's left spit out an incredulous, "The fuck?"

A bald black man wearing an eye-patch and a trench coat made his way through the crowd of people surrounding them.

"That's my fucking line."

-x-

"So what have we got here? A bunch of Spider-Man wannabes?"

Levi didn't know what a 'Spider-Man' was – though his mind was conjuring up vivid images – but he knew an insult when he heard one.

Instead of responding in kind, though he was tempted to, he checked to make sure everyone was okay. He had been on a reconnaissance mission with three four-member squads, and a quick headcount told him that all twelve people were accounted for. They had been scouting out an old town but they hadn't been there long before that shitty portal had dumped them who-knew-where. They hadn't encountered any Titans so only three people were injured, probably from hitting those big-ass buildings from the wrong angle. There were no serious injuries and everyone was conscious.

Hanji was, of course, practically shitting their pants in excitement at this new turn of events. Nearby, he could see Arlert's busy little brain working beneath his blond mop of hair. He'd have to get the kid's impressions later. For now, responsibility and damage control.

When asked for their commanding officer, he thought, _I guess that's me then. Fucking great._ Erwin was back at base and so hadn't come along for their unexpected trip, which made Levi the highest ranking member.

He stepped forward, and didn't miss how several weapons were redirected at him. "Looks like I get to represent this shitshow then."

-x-

The black man with the eye patch introduced himself as Director Nick Fury of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. That was a mouthful, but the man rattled it out calmly, with the air of a man in complete control of the situation. Director Fury told them that their cooperation was preferred, but his agents would use force if necessary. Armin couldn't see Captain Levi's face, but he could picture his reaction to _that_, especially when the Director informed them of the stipulation that they give their 3DM Gear over for 'safekeeping.' Armin couldn't help his instinctual shiver at the thought of leaving himself so exposed outside of the Walls.

Captain Levi had protested vehemently, using the kind of colourful language that was generally frowned upon when trying to diffuse a tense situation. He might have been the ranking officer, but a diplomat he was not. Armin got the sense that these people didn't mind it though.

"And none of you fuckers are even wearing 3D Manoeuver Gear, so relying on you for protection seems like a pretty shitty deal," the Captain finished.

Armin had noticed as well that they didn't have any 3DMG gear; their complete lack of visible aerial manoeuver gear was jarring. What was more, they had a confidence that shouldn't have been found in people with such an obvious vulnerability. It was just another oddity on a rapidly-growing list.

"Rest assured, we are very capable," Director Fury said, with all the conviction of a man who believed what he was saying.

"We're not going to fucking leave ourselves open to Titans," Captain Levi insisted.

Armin's mind had been shying away from the giant gleaming towers around them, not quite ready to understand the implications yet. And then the short-haired woman standing at the man's right hand said, "Titans?" in a prompting tone of voice. Like she needed more information. Like she didn't understand.

The pieces clicked into place, delicately, because his theory was still fragile, but the blank incomprehension on these people's faces made him want to laugh and scream at the same time. (At least they spoke the same language, with only a few linguistic differences. It looked like swearing was universal, as both Captain Levi and Director Fury had proven.) Distantly, he was aware that he was freaking out a little, but the things that he had taken for granted in the world might have just been turned on their heads.

He didn't want to draw attention to himself by announcing his theory and he was sure that Captain Levi would draw similar conclusions. He must have, because he explained the threat of Titans as if he was talking to someone who had never heard of them. Armin had the strong suspicion that this was exactly the case. He ignored the confusion that he could feel coming off of his fellow squadmates as his mind whirled. Thoughts were appearing in his head almost faster than he could keep up with but he drew his attention back to the present when he registered that the Captain had stopped talking.

Captain Levi's explanation had shaken them, Armin could tell. But the man, Director Fury, was insistent. "We'd still like to study one of these '3D Manoeuver Gear.' Think of it as a show of your good faith." It was clear that the man wasn't going to budge on this.

"Yeager," Captain Levi said after a moment, snapping his fingers.

Armin knew that the Captain's decision was telling and Director Fury was already trying to draw conclusions from it. Captain Levi's choice made the most sense though. If anyone was going to be deprived of their gear, it would have to be Eren. He was the best choice. His abilities as a Titan Shifter would give him a good chance of survival even unarmed.

Armin knew that, but he still had to supress a twitch as Eren unbuckled his gear and handed it over, leaving him looking strangely vulnerable. Mikasa didn't try to hide her fierce look or the protective step that she took towards him. Honestly, between his Titan Shifting and Mikasa, Eren was probably the safest person here at the moment. This knowledge allowed Armin to relax his muscles and focus elsewhere, assured that Mikasa would look after Eren.

-x-

Maria made sure to match her stride to just a pace behind the Director's as they hurried through the halls of SHIELD's lowest levels. Their first priority was to assess the threat level and contain it if needed. Captain Levi and his subordinates had surrendered themselves into SHIELD's custody, so that was one relief which opened up a host of other questions. Mainly, had they surrendered so as to get their guard down or perhaps to gain access to SHIELD's inner workings?

In any case, they had ushered the twelve people to SHIELD's underground facilities and placed them in individual rooms for interrogation, but first they needed to make sure that everyone had their orders. They also needed to focus on sweeping the scene and making it safe for civilians. In short, although they had protocols for this, SHIELD was still going to be like an ant hill that had just been kicked.

Director Fury visibly resisted the urge to pinch the bridge of his nose. He took charge of the room instead, letting his commanding presence and confidence affect the agents who were too professional to show their apprehension but were also understandably edgy about random portals appearing in the sky over New York City to spit out people of unknown military backgrounds.

"Get that stuff down to R&amp;D and have them give us a full analysis of it ASAP," he ordered the agent who was holding the '3D Manoeuver Gear' – Agent Chow, if Maria's memory served. She nodded with a quiet "Yes, sir," as she quickly left the room.

He raised his voice to address the room at large. "Someone get Richards on the phone about the portal, and don't let him give you any bullshit about how it wasn't him. It's always him."

The agents nodded. Director Fury was quoting directly from the SHIELD handbook here.

"Get Doctor Foster over here so she can reverse engineer that fucking portal," he said.

Agent Martinez stepped forward. "She's already here, sir, and has been trying to bribe the front desk into letting her pass," she said.

That was the kind of initiative that Maria approved of. The Director, not as much, so all he said was, "Send someone up to escort her to RL 3."

He then glanced at Maria, who correctly interpreted the signal and started reporting, "The area where they landed has been blocked off and is being examined for radiation, pathogens, etcetera. PR's handling the media outlets that have come sniffing around." The last thing they needed was widespread panic due to a portal opening above New York City. Again. "Additionally, both Captain Marvel and the Wasp are on standby, and Agent Romanova has volunteered her assistance in the upcoming interrogations."

Fury nodded. "Then let's get to work."

-x-

The SHIELD agents herded them underground, and led them through a series of tunnels designed to confuse them. They had been told that it was better for them to be away from civilians, which Mikasa supposed was true enough, but she was very aware that any advantage afforded by their 3DM Gear was now effectively neutralized.

Eren was also getting antsy; Mikasa knew how he hated to feel caged. Worse yet, he might not be able to transform into a Titan without bringing down the ceiling around them or crushing himself. Neither option was very attractive. She bumped against Eren's shoulder gently, and he took a shuddering breath.

She didn't like anything about their current situation, but she couldn't afford to lose her cool. She knew that people looked up to her – _the second coming of Captain Levi_, they whispered – so she had to project a confident demeanor, even if it was only a façade.

Her calm could only last for so long though, especially when they were split up for individual 'interviews' – probably to check that their stories collaborated and to glean whatever information that they could from the less-alert members of their temporary squad. There was no question in Mikasa's mind that this would be an interrogation, but at least this organization was treating them civilly enough.

Her uniform was taken – even her scarf. She was more concerned with the loss of her scarf than her state of undress; she made the guards promise her that she would get it back, in the same condition that it had left her, no less. She knew that she was exposing a weak spot, but she needed some kind of assurance that her scarf would return to her.

The woman who had come by to collect her uniform – Janet, she introduced herself as – assured her that her clothes would be taken care of, and that they simply needed to examine their uniforms for a while. Mikasa complied, because she could do nothing else.

She was then given an extensive strip search and a medical examination so thorough that it bordered on becoming a second strip search.

Mikasa supposed that anyone else would be horribly uncomfortable and that such things were meant to cow them. She just knew that poor Armin would be turning red as a tomato, and Eren probably wasn't faring much better. She gritted her teeth.

Really, it was the loss of her scarf that affected her the most, and however stoic that she might be, by the time that Mikasa was given new clothing (drab and shapeless, with nowhere to conceal a weapon), she could not say that she was entirely unaffected, so she turned her mind to reviewing the day.

The portal had swirled into existence with a crackle and had pulled them into it like a bloody maw. Everything had gone black and there had been a cold so intense that it crossed the line into burning – burning alive – but that had passed within a few seconds and they were being spit towards the ground in an entirely new location.

Mikasa just took in everything and tried to make sense of it. From what she had seen, the technology that these people had was far more advanced, as evidenced by the sheer variety of bizarre machines that Mikasa was subjected to during her medical exam, and there were definite cultural and linguistic differences.

Armin would know more about the specifics, but at least they were able to communicate with minimal difficulties. It made everything run smoother, which, given that cooperation was in their best interests, was a definite benefit for them. Captain Levi hadn't given them any indication that they should withhold information, so she would be accommodating. (Well, she wouldn't tell them anything about Eren, but that was a given.)

She had her suspicions about where they were. The people here seemed too carefree – well, the civilians did, at least.

This was a military organization, so these people were still on their guard, but not to the same extent that they would be if they were expecting attacks from man-eating Titans.

Even when they had been told of the existence of Titans, their reactions were not of visceral horror; they did not fully understand. Not yet.

Mikasa would try to enlighten them.

-x-

The interrogation process was long and detailed, however, the fact that these people had surrendered peacefully was a point in their favor. They seemed willing enough to give up information and the picture that began to form was grim. By the time they finished the interviews, Director Fury was about ready to grind his teeth.

Finally, after going through all the interview footage with a fine-toothed comb, SHIELD's top analysts were ready to brief them. Maria had a feeling that this was not going to be enjoyable.

"Before we begin," Director Fury asked, "is there anything that should be brought to my attention?"

She took this time to inform him, "Iron Man incoming, ETA two hours."

"Great," he said, allowing his annoyance to show before turning to the chief analyst. "Alright, proceed."

-x-

Agent Romanova had been most useful in the interrogations; she was the kind of person that could wield the hammer and then be the kid gloves that gentled after. Their subjects were being cooperative though, so only a delicate touch had been needed.

Once the interrogations were concluded, Maria sent Agent Romanova back to Avengers Tower where she would be more useful to Stark Industries' PR team. The media had latched onto this story like a dog with a bone and since it had happened right outside of Avengers Tower, that was where they were focusing most of their energy. Miss Potts would appreciate the extra help during this busy time.

She turned her mind to the next order of business: the 3DMG. Ms. Van Dyne had analysed their uniforms, and had come to the conclusion that the system of straps that they used with their 3DM Gear allowed for optimal dispersal of body weight and support in the air. She was quite impressed with it.

R&amp;D had also confirmed to them that this 3DM Gear was a marvel of engineering, being versatile and simple, yet optimally efficient. There was also the matter of the metal used for the Gear. Mainly that it was unknown to Earth, and contained special properties not found among the metal that they had access to here.

It was light enough to allow people to fly through the air but durable enough to pierce through and lock in even other kinds of metal. It was a unique metal incorporated into a unique design to combat some pretty unique circumstances. Attempts to replicate it were so far met with failure, which made it, in other words, almost priceless. That alone was worth considering a trip to another dimension.

Once it became apparent that travelling to this other dimension was a possibility, Maria had automatically started thinking about how the Avengers might be able to handle such a situation; they each had certain strengths (and weaknesses) to consider when the question was brought up about fighting Titans.

Maria could already imagine how dangerous Agent Romanova would be once she got her hands on those 3DMGs. She had no doubt that Agent Romanova would be absolutely deadly once she learned how to use 3DM Gear, a whirling death shadow. Agent Barton could likewise familiarize himself with the gear and then apply his exploding arrows to the neck s of these Titans. A man with a flying suit who could shoot repulsor beams could also be useful against Titans; she had seen the 3DMG in action and understood that a master could coax it to do some amazing things, but Iron Man's flight was literally no-strings-attached, with afforded him some extra maneuverability. It wasn't that difficult to see how Thor, with his lightning and flying, could be helpful against these Titans. And as for the Hulk: no explanation needed.

Plans were forming and reforming in her mind, swirling around mixed with a healthy dose of caution. There were so many questions to address, which she jotted down on her StarkPad as they came to her.

How much energy and resources would this take? While financial issues would be covered (SHIELD had a budget for 'Cross-dimensional Incidences'), they still needed to know how much energy and resources this would take. How many times could the portal be opened safely?

How high was the chance that Titans would cross over to infest this reality if the portal opened again?

They had to consider the dangers of having the entire Avenger's team in another dimension, which begged the question of how many they could afford to send, and who would be the most useful. On that note, villains were known to come out of the woodwork once a few of their opponents had left. There were the Fantastic Four and the X-Men to keep the peace, but would they be enough?

Dr. Foster was certain that she would be able to open up the portal, but Maria didn't want to get anyone's hopes up. She had to consider the political ramifications of all of this, as well as all of the safety issues that must be addressed.

There were a lot of risks, but did they outweigh the benefits? And even if this was the case, there was a small bit of conscience that wouldn't leave her alone. She had long since learned to ignore it when dealing with things of a more sensitive nature – she couldn't be compromised about this – but she was also Director Fury's right hand and he depended on her for more than her ability to objectively analyse a situation.

She settled in for a planning session with Agent Coulson, who gave her a look that could be translated to 'this is going to generate a lot of paperwork.'

-x-

Armin had been questioned by a subtly terrifying red-haired woman and he was certain that she had not been fooled by his innocent face. She let him go without too many questions, however, and he was escorted to a larger room. He had been politely but firmly encouraged to stay within the designated areas. He spent a lot of time waiting around, realizing that his interview had been concluded quickly and waiting for the others to arrive at a trickle.

When Eren was escorted in, and then Mikasa a few minutes later, he allowed himself to feel some measure of relief. At least they were all together, which Armin was grateful for because he was under no illusions that he held any power here.

A quiet inquiry revealed that Eren hadn't told them about his status as a Titan Shifter – it seemed that neither had anyone else for that matter, because these SHIELD people didn't seem to know.

Armin had no doubt that they were being monitored, but making sure that they were all on the same page was more important than whatever illusions of secrecy that they might have had. SHIELD probably had all the information that they needed to come to the same conclusions that Armin had. In fact, the pointed questions that he had been asked had helped him hone his own ideas.

With that in mind, he revealed his theory: they were in another dimension, a world without Titans even, via some kind of wormhole. Who knew that those science fiction books that he had read as a kid would come in handy?

Eren and Mikasa were willing enough to believe it and Armin planned to take his theory to Captain Levi once he returned from his own 'interview.' Until then, they decided to keep their thoughts to themselves and split up to check on the rest of the group. Several of SHIELD's people had been mingling with them, which Armin suspected was to gather information and gauge the mood of the room.

They were finally outside of the Walls and they'd found themselves right back in captivity. Granted, their captors were quite humane, but still, it was galling.

Just then, Squad Leader Zoe's raised voice caught Armin's attention.

-x-

A scientist called Jane Foster had managed to weasel her way into the room somehow (Eren got the feeling that she wasn't exactly supposed to be here, but her friend was running interference with the SHIELD people) and she and Squad Leader Hanji had hit it off right away.

Dr. Foster and Hanji were lost in the throes of knowledge, nevermind that neither of them was any kind of expert in the other's field of study. They were fast learners possessed with an overabundance of enthusiasm and a determination to discover as much as they could, which resulted in them managing to have a conversation that was incomprehensible to most of the people around them.

From what Eren could gather, she was here to try and help them but she needed more information so she decided to get it straight from the source. That was the last understandable thing that they had discussed before descending into science-talk.

"She's going to lose it when she meets Banner," a brown-skinned SHIELD woman predicted as she watched Hanji. Her statement had been spoken quietly to her colleague, who nodded in agreement, but now Eren's interest was piqued.

"Who is 'Banner?'" he asked.

The woman chewed on her lip in consideration. These SHIELD people were probably not supposed to give them information, but it seemed like whatever the woman wanted to warn them about overrode her professionalism. After a moment, she seemed to make a decision, because she said, "Really smart guy, also happens to turn into a – how did Stark put it? – an enormous green rage-monster when he gets pissed off. Word to the wise: don't piss him off."

"Kind of like a Titan Shifter then," Eren said, feeling something well up inside of him. Excitement? Nausea? Anticipation, he decided. The thought of another person like him was simultaneously repulsive and appealing.

Squad Leader Hanji, ever alert for any mention of Titans, perked up and asked from across the room, "Ehh? Is someone talking about Titan Shifters?"

"Oh, now you've gone and done it," someone muttered. Eren suspected it was Moblit. The poor man really didn't get paid enough for everything that he had to put up with.

The woman looked a bit nervous, but also defiant, and not much could stand in the way of Hanji's enthusiasm. "Well, I suppose you should know, if only for your own protection..." One quick explanation later and Hanji was ready to swoon.

"The total package! Yes, we must meet! Take me to your Banner! We will make glorious science all night long!"

Eren had to admit that he was also looking forward to meeting this Doctor Banner; he might not be another Titan Shifter, but from what he had been told, the man understood monstrous transformations and losing control. Maybe they could…compare notes? Exchange tips on how to control the monster inside of them? Eren was aware that he was being optimistic, but at least he wasn't being as openly enthusiastic as Squad Leader Hanji.

Moblit, on the other hand, was palming his face and shaking his head slowly in the background.

-x-

Mikasa didn't like this. She agreed with Armin; they were most certainly being monitored, and the feeling was putting her on edge. Really, the only person who seemed happy about all of this was Squad Leader Zoe. She had met a fellow scientist and even Captain Levi's swift kick to the back of her knees hadn't been able to curb her enthusiasm.

She had buckled, sure, but had popped back up with a raucous laugh and continued to talk. That had garnered her a few odd looks, but when the topic had changed to Titan Shifters and Doctor Banner, those looks had changed. Mikasa had seen wariness, fear, and a bit of revulsion. She didn't want those looks turned on Eren. She also didn't want them to kill Eren, or experiment on him –

Mikasa felt all of her muscles tense up and her fingers twitched towards swords that she no longer had. She was not helpless without her weapons – not in the least – but she knew that her chances were not good.

She was working herself up; she needed to calm down. There was no scarf for her to bury her fingers in and hide her face, but Eren was very perceptive when it came to her and Armin. He brushed up against her, offering himself as a steady presence at her side. She clutched at his arm for a moment, in quiet thanks.

-x-

"The subjects have been told about Banner, sir," said the tech that had been assigned primary control of the security cameras in Holding Room C.

"What?" Nick asked, exasperated. Could no one in this damn organization stick to the plan?

"It's yielded some profitable information about things called 'Titan Shifters,' sir," she replied.

Nick was starting to get a bad feeling about this. "They didn't mention those during interrogation," he muttered, frowning.

"I can see why not," she said, then replayed the relevant footage. "Also, sir," she added, pushing her glasses up in a nervous gesture that she hadn't been trained out of yet, "Our bugs caught a whispered conversation between Subjects Ackerman, Arlert, and Yeager. It registered with us as odd, but we didn't really understand until Subject Zoe explained about Titan Shifters." She played the audio, synching it up to the part of the video where they had been huddled together.

Nick stared at the screen for a moment, then asked, "You mean that this Yeager boy is one of these Titan Shifter and we've been keeping him underground during stressful conditions?" He was starting to get a headache right behind his eyes.

"Yes, sir," the tech said, adjusting her glasses again.

"Contact Agent Hill," he sighed. "Let's try and get this sorted out."

-x-

Although collecting genetic samples of Yeager would be preferable, they didn't want to unintentionally introduce Titan DNA to this world, especially if it ever became crossed with the Hulk serum. Maria's brain was helpfully bringing to mind graphic images of an unsuspecting lab tech turning into a man-eating Hulk-like creature. They had their hands full enough with one man who was extremely dedicated to controlling himself. They did not need this additional problem, especially not with a teenager that Psych had cautioned them about.

The samples that they had already gathered were bumped up in security level and would now be treated with the same caution as Dr. Banner's DNA samples. All agents who had come into contact with their visitors had gone through decontamination due to the risk of foreign pathogens, but now they would take even more precautions. They had informed the Wasp of this developing situation, and she was ready should her larger form be needed.

"They should have told us about this," Maria said as she continued to develop more contingency plans.

"I can understand why they didn't," Coulson replied. "Nevertheless, this is going to cause more problems."

"More paperwork," Maria said.

"More paperwork," he agreed.

-x-

The revelations surrounding the boy, Eren Yeager, necessitated another round of interrogations – carefully done out in the open so as to reassure the boy's companions that they weren't going to whisk him away to experiment on. His adopted sister in particular was getting antsy.

Maria had overseen that process and left Coulson the task of superhero-wrangling. Once the interrogations were through and the new information was being managed, she asked Coulson for an update.

"We got a hold of Dr. Richards and he said that he's working on a way to fix this," he reported.

Considering that it was the man's fault in the first place, Maria was understandably underwhelmed. "Would sending Stark to him make things better or worse?" she mused.

"They'll bicker, but it'll keep them occupied until Dr. Foster recreates the portal."

True enough.

Just in case they actually succeeded in recreating the portal, Director Fury warned them in the strongest possible terms not to keep it open due to the high probability that a Titan would come through. Doctor Richards sounded more interested than Maria thought the situation warranted but Stark managed to talk him out of whatever ridiculous plans were swirling around in his head. Maria almost couldn't believe that Stark of all people was being a voice of reason, but then again, they were dealing with people from another dimension and giant monsters that wanted to eat them.

Granted, SHIELD had dealt with stranger things, but not by much. This was definitely among the top ten weirdest situations that Maria had encountered, including that thing with the porcupines.

-x-

As it turned out, it only took Doctor Foster a few hours to come up with a way to recreate the portal.

She had claimed that she needed the first-hand accounts of people who had traveled through the portal, and had managed to gain access to the room that they were being held in. Phil had allowed this, mostly for information-gathering purposes; there was a chance that someone would let something interesting slip. They had learned that Eren Yeager was a 'Titan-Shifter,' so his idea had paid off and they were able to start planning for containment and damage control should Yeager lose control.

Doctor Foster had spent an inordinate amount of time talking to Hanji Zoe, but she had eventually left to finish up her calculations. Now that they had a viable way for their visitors to return to their home dimension, they could start discussing the particulars in ways that weren't hypothetical anymore.

While they were in the middle of doing so, Maria's phone chimed. She glanced down at it, then announced, "Stark hacked us."

"Of course he did," Director Fury sighed.

"Is he going to sit on the information?" she asked.

"Chances are he's already shared it with the whole team, but is willing to step aside for now," Phil replied.

He sent a quick text off to Natasha, who confirmed that they had indeed decided to wait on the information. Stark had been all for barging in and interrupting what was already a delicate process, but the others had talked him out of that. Banner hadn't taken the news of another shifter too well, particularly one who was only fifteen. Nonetheless, they had agreed to wait.

He got a text from Clint, who said, _They only agreed because they trust you. It helps that this isn't exactly Phase Two stuff._

_Although,_ Natasha added, _Stark wants to make it clear that there will be no disappearing of the Yeager kid. Might make Dr. Banner angry._

Phil understood why the threat was necessary, and he didn't begrudge the team their wariness, considering that this _was_ a shady government organization. It was sometimes helpful to have accountability.

He explained what his assets had told him and received two nods. Well alright then. Time to get to work.

-x-

When they left the conference room after yet another extensive planning session, they were greeted with the stubborn expressions of the Avengers. Phil almost sighed aloud.

Steve Rogers' sense of right and wrong would not allow him to walk away from this and he didn't care who knew it. Phil internally cringed at the thought of being on the receiving end of Captain America's disappointed look. Banner also looked visibly upset, no doubt drawing connections between his own experiences and those of Eren Yeager's. Stark, who cared more than he let on, was practically quivering in his suit. Clint's face was carefully blank, which was its own tell, while Natasha had a wrinkle between her brow that she was allowing him to see.

"Follow me," he said. "I'll explain on the way."

-x-

There seemed to be no consequences for hiding Eren's abilities, besides everyone being interrogated twice over. Mikasa had been waiting for SHIELD to drag Eren away, but as the hours passed and nothing happened she found herself relaxing until even she was bored with the amount of time that everything was taking.

Eventually, the short-haired woman – Agent Hill – came for them. Their uniforms were given back to them, as was Mikasa's scarf. She snatched it up and wound it around her neck, feeling a bit of tension seep out of her shoulders. Even though their weapons hadn't been returned yet, Mikasa already felt better. Her spine straightened and she carried herself with a genuine confidence. She could see that the return of their uniforms was having a similar effect on the others.

-x-

Everyone was herded into an improvised conference room, with Captain Levi's people sitting around the table. Nick commanded the attention of the room, with Agents Hill and Coulson stood at his right and left, respectively. The Avengers stood against the wall, looking serious and attentive. Even Stark wasn't making any wisecracks. By this point, they had been thoroughly briefed and they understood the gravity of the situation.

"Now, SHIELD was created for the protection of the Earth – for the protection of humanity, you could say."

Their guests perked up. That was one phrase that they had noted in multiple interviews; their worldview was based on it and it was sure to catch their attention. The blond kid's eyes sharpened, as did those of the commanding officers. They could see where this was going.

"Now let's see if something can't be done about your Titan problem. Ladies and gentlemen, let me explain to you about the Avenger's Initiative…"

The battle to save humanity was about to change tides.

* * *

**A/N:** Let's leave it here with optimism, but let me know what you think!


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